Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

DISSERTATION PROJECT ON CUSTOMER EXPECTATION AND SATISFACTION OF SERVICE QUALITY

(Conducted for Monday to Sunday- Retail outlet)

Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for MBA

Degree of Bangalore University

By
TANVI RANGA HARITAS
REG NO. 05XQCM6103

Under the guidance and supervision of

Mr. Afzal Hussain Customer Care Associate and Regional Manager Operations Monday to Sunday

Professor K.L Ramdas MPBIM (Internal Guide)

M.P BIRLA INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT Associate Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan # 43, Race Course Road, Bangalore-560001

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

DECLARATION

I hereby declare that the research work embodied in this dissertation entitled CUSTOMER EXPECTATION AND SATISFACTION OF SERVICE QUALITY (Conducted for Monday to Sunday- Retail outlet) has been carried out by me under the guidance and supervision of Professor K.L Ramdas, M.P.B.I.M., Bangalore (Internal Guide).I also declare that this dissertation has not been submitted to any University or Institution for the award of any Degree or Diploma.

Place: Bangalore HARITAS Date: 07 May,2007

TANVI R

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

GUIDES CERTIFICATE

I hereby certify that the research work embodied in the dissertation

CUSTOMEREXPECTATION AND SATISFACTION OF SERVICE QUALITY(Conducted for Monday to Sunday- Retail outlet) has been undertaken and
completed by Tanvi R Haritas under my guidance and supervision. I also certify that she has fulfilled all the requirements under the covenant governing the submission of dissertation to the Bangalore University for the award of MBA degree.

Place: Bangalore Ramdas) Date : 07 May,2007

(Prof. K.L

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

PRINCIPALS CERTIFICATE

I hereby certify that this dissertation is an offshoot of the research work undertaken and completed by Tanvi R Haritas under the guidance of, Professor K.L Ramdas, M.P.B.I.M. Bangalore.

Place: Bangalore Malavalli) Date : 07 May,2007 MPBIM

(Dr. N. S.
Principal,

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

I extend my sincere thanks to Professor K. Ramdas MPBIM, Bangalore for providing me all the information required and the guidance throughout the project without which this project would not have been possible. I would like to thank Mr. Afzal Hussain, Customer Care Associate and Regional Manager Operations, Monday to Sunday and Mr. Ajay Kumar, Store Manager, Monday to Sunday for providing me an opportunity to work on this project. I would also like to sincerely thank all my lecturers and my friends for their help in completing my project successfully.

(Tanvi R Haritas)

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Serial No.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10

Topic
EXECUTIVE SUMMMARY INTRODUCTION RESEARCH DESIGN COMPANY PROFILE INDUSTRY PROFILE ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION FINDINGS OF THE STUDY SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS ANNEXURE BIBLIOGRAPHY

Page No.
1 2 14 18 28 33 49 51 53 56

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LIST OF TABLES
Serial No.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 19 11

Table Title
Table 1- Table showing age group of respondents Table2- Table showing gender of the respondents Table 3- Table showing frequency of customers visiting Monday to Sunday Table 4- Table showing the time span since the respondent has been a customer of Monday to Sunday Table 5-Table showing the customers ranking in terms of cleanliness Table 6-Table showing the customers satisfaction in terms of interiors at Monday to Sunday Table 7- Table showing the customers satisfaction in terms of bill transaction Table 8- Table showing the customers satisfaction with respect to display of products Table 9- Table showing the customers ranking of shopping experience at Monday to Sunday Table 11- Table showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of helping customers Table 11- Table showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of knowledge of products

Page No.
33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43

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12

Table 12-Table showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of courteousness/politeness towards customers

44

13

Table 13- Table showing the ranking of products in terms of availability

45

14

Table 14 - Table showing the ranking of products in terms of quality

45

15

Table 15- Table showing the ranking of products in terms of pricing

46

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LIST OF CHARTS

Serial No.
1 2 3 4

Chart Title
Chart 1- Chart showing age group of respondents Chart 2-Chart showing gender of respondents Chart 3-Chart showing frequency of customers visiting Monday to Sunday Chart 4- Chart showing the time span since the respondent has been a customer of Monday to Sunday Chart5-Chart showing the customers ranking in terms of cleanliness Chart 6-Chart showing the customers satisfaction in terms of interiors at Monday to Sunday Chart 7- Chart showing the customers satisfaction in terms of bill transaction Chart 8- Chart showing the customers satisfaction with respect to display of products Chart 9- Chart showing the customers ranking of shopping experience at Monday to Sunday

Page No.
33 34 35 36

5 6 7 8 9

37 38 39 40 41

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10 11

Chart 10- Chart showing the ranking of sales personell with respect to helping customers Chart 11-Chart showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of knowledge of products

42 43

12

Chart 12- Chart showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of courteousness/politeness towards customers Chart 13- Chart showing ranking of products by customers in terms of availability, quality, pricing Chart 14- Chart indicating whether customers will recommend the store to a friend or relative

44

13

46

14

48

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EXECUTIVE SUMMMARY
The Indian retail industry is no more nascent today. Retailing in India is gradually inching its way toward becoming the next boom industry. The whole concept of shopping has altered in terms of format and consumer buying behavior, ushering in a revolution in shopping in India. Modern retail has entered India as seen in sprawling shopping centres, multi-storeyed malls and huge complexes. In partial fulfillment of MBA degree of Bangalore University, I took up a Dissertation project titled Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality (Conducted for Monday to Sunday- Retail outlet). Organised retail in India has become the buzz of the day. Hence, I thought it would be a right time to take such a project and present the findings of what impact it has made. I have also specified in the end of the dissertation the findings and the suggestions to the company which the company can consider to improve performance.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

INTRODUCTION
BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY
The Indian retailing industry was traditionally dominated by small kirana stores. However with globalization, organized retailing has become the buzz word in India. Though organized retailing occupies a minuscular share of the retail industry, it is characterized by intense competition and multi channel delivery systems. The research that forms the basis of this dissertation will be carried out at Monday to Sunday, a retailer based in Bangalore. The core business of it is retailing .The main objective of this project is to find out the customers expectations, perceptions and satisfaction, and a measure of service quality at Monday to Sunday. Retailing consists of those business activities involved in the sales of goods and services to consumers for their personal, family or household use. The field of retailing is both fascinating and complex. It has enormous impact on the economy, in distribution, and its relationship with companies that see goods and services to retailers for their resale or use. Retailing is the final stage in the distribution process, it does not necessary have to include a retailer. Manufacturers, importers, non-profit firms, and wholesalers, and other organization are also considered as retailers when they sell goods and/or services to final consumers. Competition in the retailing scene has intensified manifold for the past few decades, generally as a consequence of new technologies, more sophisticated management practices and industry consolidation. These trends have been especially pronounced in the food industry.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality There has been a significant amount of studies that examine the issues of retail chain channel management and retail marketing strategies to tackle the fierce competition in existing retail channels in food industry. As in all other industries, the ultimate decider of the eventual success of an alternative retail channel is the CONSUMER. Consumers refer to individuals who buy products and services for themselves or on behalf on their households. They are invariably either users of these products or services or responsible for the welfare and well being of those who are. Since consumers are extremely crucial for retailers, an understanding of consumer behavior is an essential prerequisite of successful retail marketing strategy and one of the most fundamental principles of in exerting influence on consumer patronage decision process. Without customer focus, marketing planning can easily be dominated by the actions of competitors or internal influences. The success of a retailer depends on how well he/she selects, identifies and understands his customers. The feasibility of new retail channels is also highly dependent on retailers ability to select the type of consumer segments to reach (mass markets, market segment, or multiple segments), to identify the characteristics and needs of the specific target market and understanding how consumers make decisions. According to Peter Mc Goldrick, the most successful examples of innovation and evolution in retail formats are retailers that respond accurately and profitably to previously unsatisfied needs.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality TYPES OF RETAIL OUTLETS The emergence of new sectors has been accompanied by changes in existing formats as well as the beginning of new formats: . Hyper marts, typically 8,000 sq.ft and more . Large supermarkets, typically 3,500-5,000 sq. ft. . Mini supermarkets, typically 1,000-2,000 sq. ft. . Convenience stores, typically 750-1,000sq. ft. . Discount/shopping list grocery

THEORETICAL BACKGROUND

Consumer Research: It is the process and tools used to study consumer behavior. Consumer behavior refers to the behavior that display by him/ her in searching for purchasing, using, evaluating and disposing of product or services that they expect.

Market Exclusivity: It refers to single means monopoly market. Where the company wants to have full market control. So, exclusivity in service like telecommunication refers to have only the company.s services and full control over the intermediaries and customer.

Market: A market is the set of all actual and potential buyers of a market offer. The size of a market depends on the number of buyers who might exist for a particular market.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Potential Market: The potential market is the set of consumers who show a sufficient level of interest in a market. Potential consumers access to the product offer. The available market is the set of consumers who have interest, income and access to a particular type.

CUSTOMER SATISFACTION Customer satisfaction is the individuals perception of the performance of the product or service in relation to his or her expectations. Customer expectations are the reference points for performance against which service experiences are compared. Among the various benefits of customer satisfaction, the most important benefit is that the customer satisfaction creates loyal customer.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

TYPES OF CUSTOMERS

SATISFIED CUSTOMERS Whose experience exceeds the expectations and who provide very positive word of mouth about the company to the others

NEUTRAL CUSTOMERS Who are neutral or merely satisfied and are likely to stop doing business with the company.

DISSATISFIED CUSTOMERS Who have had negative experience with the company and who spread negative word of mouth? Who are unhappy customers and who stay with the company because of a monopolistic environment or low prices and who are difficult and costly to deal with because of their frequent complaints.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

SERVICE QUALITY

The SERVQUAL method from Valarie A. Zeithaml, A. Parasuraman, and Leonard L. Berry is a technique that can be used for performing a gap analysis of an organization's service quality performance against customer service quality needs. SERVQUAL is an empirically derived method that may be used by a services organization to improve service quality. The method involves the development of an understanding of the perceived service needs of target customers. These measured perceptions of service quality for the organization in question, are then compared against an organization that is "excellent". The resulting gap analysis may then be used as a driver for service quality improvement. SERVQUAL takes into account the perceptions of customers of the relative importance of service attributes. This allows an organization to prioritize. And to use its resources to improve the most critical service attributes. The data are collected via surveys of a sample of customers. In these surveys, these customers respond to a series of questions based around a number of key service dimensions. The methodology was originally based around 5 key dimensions: 1.Tangibles. Appearance of physical facilities, equipment, personnel, and communication materials. 2.Reliability. Ability to perform the promised service dependably and

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

accurately. 3.Responsiveness. Willingness to help customers and provide prompt service. 4.Assurance. Knowledge and courtesy of employees and their ability to convey trust and confidence. 5.Empathy. The firm provides care and individualized attention to its customers. This has been adapted later by some to cover: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. Tangibles. Appearance of physical facilities, equipment, personnel, and Reliability. Ability to perform the promised service dependably and Responsiveness. Willingness to help customers and provide prompt Competence. Possession of required skill and knowledge to perform Courtesy. Politeness, respect, consideration and friendliness of contact Credibility. Trustworthiness, believability, honesty of the service Feel secure. Freedom from danger, risk, or doubt. Access. Approachable and easy of contact. Communication. Listens to its customers and acknowledges their Understanding the customer. Making the effort to know customers and

communication materials. accurately. service. service. personnel. provider.

comments. Keeps customers informed. In a language which they can understand. their needs.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

ORIGIN OF SERVQUAL. HISTORY The authors conducted a qualitative study, from which they concluded that customers ranked the importance of two SERVQUAL dimensions consistently. Regardless of service industry. Reliability is the most important contributing factor to service quality and tangibles is the least important.

USAGE OF SERVQUAL. APPLICATIONS

SERVQUAL is widely used within service industries to understand the

perceptions of target customers regarding their service needs. And to provide a measurement of the service quality of the organization.

SERVQUAL may also be applied internally to understand employees'

perceptions of service quality. With the objective of achieving service improvement.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality STEPS IN SERVQUAL. PROCESS

The method essentially involves conducting a sample survey of customers so that their perceived service needs are understood. And for measuring their perceptions of service quality for the organization in question. Customers are asked to answer numerous questions within each dimension that determines:

The relative importance of each attribute. A measurement of performance expectations that would relate to an A measurement of performance for the company in question.

"excellent" company.

This provides an assessment of the gap between desired and actual performance, together with a ranking of the importance of service criteria. This allows an organization to focus its resources. To maximize service quality whilst costs are controlled.

STRENGTHS OF SERVQUAL. BENEFITS Most users would agree that a comprehensive and thorough examination of service needs and service quality provides an invaluable approach to improving service quality.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

SERVQUAL provides detailed information about:

Customer perceptions of service (a benchmark established by your own Performance levels as perceived by customers Customer comments and suggestions Impressions from employees with respect to customers expectations and

customers)

satisfaction

LIMITATIONS OF SERVQUAL. DISADVANTAGES There have been a number of studies that doubt the validity of the 5 dimensions. And of the uniform applicability of the method for all service sectors. According to an analysis by Thomas P. Van Dyke, Victor R. Prybutok, and Leon A. Kappelman, it appears that the use of difference scores in calculating SERVQUAL contributes to problems with the reliability, discriminant validity, convergent validity, and predictive validity of the measurement. These findings suggest that caution should be exercised in the use of SERVQUAL scores and that further work is needed in the development of measures for assessing the quality of information services.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality ASSUMPTIONS OF SERVQUAL. CONDITIONS

The results of market surveys are accurate. The validity of the model is

based around the results of empirical studies. A number of academics have since performed further empirical studies that appear to contradict some of the original findings.

Customer needs can be documented and captured, and they remain stable

during the whole process.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

PROBLEM STATEMENT
The crux of the problem lies in whether customers prefer to shop at the usual kirana stores or are they satisfied by buying at Monday to Sunday. Also, the problem is to assess the service quality of Monday to Sunday outlet in Bangalore.

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

To understand the expectations of the customers.. To capture the perceptions of consumers towards services offered.. To analyze service quality pre process customer satisfaction To make appropriate recommendations about customerss expectations and satisfaction to the company.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

RESEARCH DESIGN
The research study first examines the various facets of service at the retail outlet and the impact on the purchase behavior of the customers. A thorough literature survey has been made in light of all the things surrounding customer satisfaction. Then a survey is taken among the general public with a sample to arrive at several conclusions.

TYPE OF RESEARCH
It is a survey done to know the service quality with regard to Monday to Sunday.This includes the questionnaire to know the service quality.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Primary data was collected using the structured questionnaire and also through personal interaction with the consumers at the store and personal observation. Secondary data will be collected from various articles published in magazines, internet, company brochures and publications. The data was collected by contacting the 100 consumers personally at Monday to Sunday outlet in Bangalore city. Collected data was tabulated using tables, charts and graphs. Percentage was calculated and conclusions were drawn from the interpretation.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

SAMPLING

Sampling TechniqueThe sampling technique followed was, administrating 100 questionnaires to the customers selected on convenience basis in the absence of any data base about the customers. That is irrespective of whether the customers purchased at Monday to Sunday on a regular basis or not, but the questionnaire was given to people who made a purchase at the outlet.

Sample Size-

The chosen sample size was 100.The sample was derived from the respondents within Bangalore city at the Monday to Sunday retail outlet.

Sample Description-

The data taken for study is a convenient sample representing those who have been purchasing from Monday to Sunday from some time, so that a proper conclusion can be reached.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

INSTRUMENTATION TECHNIQUES

The questionnaire technique is used for the survey and the reasons for using this approach are It covers wide area It is not an expensive affair Original data could be obtained Easy to tabulate and understand

COLLECTION OF DATA
Data has been collected from both primary and secondary sources. Primary data is collected by the questionnaires and personal observation. Secondary data is collected by the referring to several journals, books, internet, magazines, etc.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

The data is restricted to only one outlet. Time constraint Results are purely based on primary information The analysis and interpretation is made under the assumption that data are accurate.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

COMPANY PROFILE
Monday to Sunday is a chain of super stores, which operates in Bangalore. Its unique selling proposition is freshness. The outlets encompass the whole gamut of food products, frozen, chilled, fresh, packaged, canned and dry. The store offers to its customers the widest selection of fresh fruit, vegetables, meats and frozen products, under regulated temperature and hygiene. The stores have an offering of over 20,000 products across fresh food, processed food, groceries, liquor, home care and personal care categories. The stores have invested in a 100% power back up for all its equipment as well as air conditioning and is therefore successful in providing a completely temperature-controlled environment for all food stuffs, ensuring their freshness and longevity. For example, the fresh vegetables and fruits are displayed and stored in chillers, ensuring freshness through the day. Similarly, the fresh homemade ice creams and meats are stored in freezers that have 100% power backup, so icicles do not form on the meat as it thaws and resets. This prevents any build up of bacteria. Since its inception Monday to Sunday has created strong brand loyalty with a segment of discerning customers within Bangalore and has continued to set benchmarks in food retailing in this market. Monday-to-Sunday convenience store chain is run by Food Express Store India Limited. The Hyper Market, which is designed on similar lines that of international shopping malls like Wal Mart, is a single-point food store covering

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality primarily food items including packaged foods, processed items, groceries, vegetable/fruits, bakery products, confectioneries, savouries along with a range of beverages as well as alcohol. In addition, it will also stock non-food items like apparels, sports goods, bed and linen to name a few in the near future. The unique selling proposition of the Hyper Market is the price and range. It also stands apart in terms of ambience, technology and convenience. Part of the Bhartia Group that owns Jubliant Organosys Ltd., Food Express Store acquired Amalgam Foods and Beverages to set up its maiden store at Indiranagar. The Bangalore-based venture which started off as a convenience store four years ago has since then set up two supermarkets in the city at Koramangala and JP Nagar. Besides the Hyper Market, the company is aggressively looking at expanding in its formats - supermarkets and convenience stores in Bangalore. The outlet expansion will also increase head count manifold to service the burgeoning retail sector. Currently, Monday-to-Sunday has a 50-member workforce for back-end operations and 200 at the front end. The robust back-end team is aimed to handle the expansion plans of the company and garner the required experience in handling the rapid rise of customer inflow. The strengths of Monday-to-Sunday rest on business, people, environment and integrity and the company is investing in both manpower and technology to be competitive. Jubilant Corporations business interest in food and retail segment is represented through Dominos Pizza and Monday to Sunday. The brand equity enjoyed by these companies is

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality formidable and is based on the value Jubilant has built over the years of operating in this segment. As pioneers in these businesses they have an all-India network of outlets for Dominos (company-owned) . These are built on strong fundamentals, which include the supply chain management and a strong team manning these outlets. These fundamentals have enabled them to consistently offer fresh and quality products, standardized across the country for each business. Jubilant Corporation, with the promise of Caring, Sharing, Growing, is a conglomerate of four businesses - namely Life Science Products & Speciality Chemicals, Oil & Gas (Exploration & Production), Food and Services.

Jubilant symbolizes positivity, dynamism, triumph and joy, all of which guide and shape the corporation's collective experiences and efforts. Jubilant will always care for human needs, share its expertise to provide a better life and help upgrade the stakeholders standard of living and the corporation's sustainable growth by dynamizing the value chain within the Corporation. Jubilants vision is to be amongst the top 10 most admired companies to work for. They want to maintain and acquire the first or second leadership position in our chosen area of business in India and to establish it globally. They endeavor to create new opportunities for growth in our strategic businesses which give a 10 points higher rate of return than the cost of capital.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Jubilants values guide to achieve our vision in our chosen areas of business, which comprise the following:

Life Science Products and Speciality Chemicals Jubilant Organosys Jubilant Biosys Jubilant Chemsys Jubilant Clinsys PSI & PSI Supply Trigen Laboratories Clinsys

Oil & Gas (E&P) Jubilant Enpro

Food Domino's Pizza Monday To Sunday

Services Jubilant Enpro

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

Vision, Promise and Values

Jubilants Values determine their business path. Combined with Promise and Vision, these values have determined what they have achieved and they continue to guide their future.

Jubilants Values

Teamwork

They carefully select, train and develop people to be creative, empower them to take decisions, so that they respond to all customers with agility, confidence and teamwork.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Efficiency

Jubilant stretches itself to be cost effective and efficient in all aspects of operations and focusses on flawless delivery to create and provide the best value to customers.

Knowhow

By sharing knowledge and learning from each other and from the markets they serve, Jubilant continues to surprise customers with innovative solutions.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Delivery

With utmost care for the environment and safety, Jubilant always strives to excel in the quality of processes, products and services.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

BUSINESS PATH

All the four values are linked to each other in the Business path of Jubilant. Confidence leads to efficiency. Efficiency leads to knowledge sharing which in turn leads to quality.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

JUBILANTS PROMISE

Jubilant promises to care for the environment, the customer, to provide good products, to invest resources in a wise way and to even enhance the share holder value.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

JUBILANTS VISION

The vision of the company is to be among the top 10 companies, To be 1 or 2 in the chosen area of business, and To create new opportunities for growth.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

INDUSTRY PROFILE
The Indian Retail Industry
The Indian retail industry is no more nascent today. There has been a significant change in retail trading over the years, from small kiranawalas in the vicinity to big super markets; a transition is happening from the traditional retail sector to organized retailing. The unorganized sector still holds a dominant position in this industry. Organised retailing was worth Rs 23,000 crore in 2003 and is growing at a rate of 25-30 per cent annually. Retail is Indias largest industry, accounting for over 10 per cent of the countrys GDP and around eight per cent of the employment. Retail industry in India is at the crossroads. It has emerged as one of the most dynamic and fast paced industries with several players entering the market. But because of the heavy initial investments required, break even is difficult to achieve and many of these players have not tasted success so far. However, the future is promising; the market is growing, government policies are becoming more favorable and emerging technologies are facilitating operations. Retailing in India is gradually inching its way toward becoming the next boom industry. The whole concept of shopping has altered in terms of format and consumer buying behavior, ushering in a revolution in shopping in India. Modern retail has entered India as seen in sprawling shopping centres, multi-storeyed malls and huge complexes offer

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

shopping, entertainment and food all under one roof. The Indian retailing sector is at an inflexion point where the growth of organized retailing and growth in the consumption by the Indian population is going to take a higher growth trajectory. The Indian population is witnessing a significant change in its demographics. A large young working population with median age of 24 years, nuclear families in urban areas, along with increasing working-women population and emerging opportunities in the services sector are going to be the key growth drivers of the organized retail sector in India.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

Growth in Organized Retailing

The organized segment of the retail industry has grown past the 1% share during the year, from 0.6% of the market three years back. The establishment of supermarkets and convenience stores has been a great effort to communicate the advantages of organized retailing to customers. With supermarkets like Apna Bazaar, Sahakari Bhandar, 9 to 9, Food World and Margin Free shops providing easy access to goods at reduced prices, with few even providing a constant supply of foreign goods, the organized sector does attract the bargain hunter's attention. Food and clothing still account for the largest proportion of consumer spending. Together they account for about 60% of the estimated household expenditure. With the hospitality sector expected to grow at a compounded annual growth of about 13% during the next three years, the food retailing ventures can certainly be looked at to spread further across cities. Customer relationship management tracks down loyal customers and focuses on their satisfaction. A rapid transformation from traditional to organized retailing would occur only on account of a change in consumer expectation and behaviour. To tackle this factor, retailers are focusing on retaining customers through various marketing strategies.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

Food retail

Food dominates the shopping basket in India. The Indian foods industry, which forms 44 per cent of the entire FMCG sales, is growing at 9 per cent and has set the growth agenda for modern trade formats. Since nearly 60 per cent of the average Indian grocery basket comprises non-branded items, the branded food industry is homing in on converting Indian consumers to branded food. With consumers looking at convenience with multiplicity of choice under one roof and expectations evolving over time, consumer demand is truly the driving force for organized retailing in the country. Food and beverages form the main chunk of the retail market. They are followed by apparel and footwear. The Indian textile industry, the backbone of the apparel segment, has a large share of the Indian economy, accounting for over 20% of industrial production as well as providing direct and indirect employment to around 65 million people.

Grocery retailers continued to be the staple of retailing in 2005, accounting for threequarters of overall retailing value sales. Moderate growth of 7% in current value terms for grocery retailers in 2005 over the previous year was mainly attributable to the hegemony of a large and mature base of independent grocers and, to a much smaller extent, food specialists and other grocery retailers. Up and coming modern retail channels such as hypermarkets, supermarkets, convenience stores and discounters were unable to make a significant mark in grocery retailers' value due to a limited geographical spread and

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality consumer reach. However, kiranas could hardly afford to be complacent, with supermarkets and hypermarkets experiencing strong growth. Supermarkets and hypermarkets benefited due to their vast product portfolios tailored to consumer demand, promotional initiatives, private label and affordable pricing, which made it enticing for consumers to make a switch from traditional kiranas.

Supermarkets also expanded current value sales by expanding into smaller towns and cities, registering a commendable 28% growth in 2005 over the previous year.Despite the retail store density in India with regard to population being the largest, it is estimated that over 90% of the stores are less than 500 sq. ft in size. Industry estimates put the number of retail outlets at 12 million. This is clearly indicative of small-shop ownership crowding the unorganized segment of retailing. While this fragmented market structure does pose significant challenges for organized retailing, potential does exist if modern information and supply chain management systems are deployed to support the development of convenience shops that match customer expectations.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

ANALYSIS AND INTERPRETATION

Table 1- Table showing age group of respondents

Serial No. 1 2 3 4

Age group of respondents Less than or equal to 20 Between 20 and 30 Between 30 and 40 Above 40

Percentage of respondents 11 63 17 9

Chart 1- Chart showing age group of respondents

No. of respondents

80 60 40 20 0 Less than or equal to 20 Between 20 and Between 30 and 30 40 Age group of respondents Above 40 Series1

Source-Market Survey

From the above table, it is evident that most of the customers who visit Monday to Sunday are aged between 20 and 30. 63 percent of the respondents fell in this category. About 17 percent of the respondents were aged between 30 and 40, 11 percent below 20 and only 9 percent of them were aged above 40.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table2- Table showing gender of the respondents.

Serial No. 1 2

Gender of the respondents Male Female

Percentage of respondents 65 35

Chart 2-Chart showing gender of respondents

80 60 Number of 40 respondents 20 0

Male, 65 Female, 35 Male Female

Source-Market Survey

Gender indicates proportion of Male and Female customers who have visited monday to sunday. It has been well documented that males and females can differ in traits, attitudes, and activities that can affect consumer behavior and choices. Hence the gender details of the respondents were collected, which has been shown in the diagram. From the statistics we can find that 65 percent of the respondents were males and the remaining were females.

Table 3- Table showing frequency of customers visiting Monday to Sunday.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Serial No. 1 2 3 4 Frequency Weekly Fortnightly Monthly Quite rarely Percentage of respondents 41 21 17 21

Chart 3-Chart showing frequency of customers visiting Monday to Sunday

Number of respondents

50 40 30 20 41 10 0 1.Weekly 21 2.Fortnightly 17 3.Monthly 21 4.Quite rarely

Series1

Frequency of visiting

Source-Market Survey

Most of the customers, that is almost half of the entire customer population visit the outlet on a weekly basis. About 21 percent of them visit on a fortnightly basis or quite rarely. 17 percent of the customers visit on a monthly basis.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table 4- Table showing the time span since the respondent has been a customer of Monday to Sunday.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4

Time span Less than 6 months 6 months to 1 year 1 year- 2years More than 2 years

Percentage of respondents 43 21 23 13

Chart 4- Chart showing the time span since the respondent has been a customer of Monday to Sunday.

1.Less than 6 months 2.6 months to 1 year 3.1 year- 2years 4.More than 2 years

Source-Market Survey

Out of the 100 respondents surveyed, nearly 43 percent of them have been customers of Monday to Sunday since a month. The number of respondents who have purchased for more than 6 months to a year and more than a year to two years are almost the same counting upto 21 and 23 respectively. Only 13 customers have been purchasing for more than two years.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table 5-Table showing the customers ranking in terms of cleanliness.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Levels of Cleanliness Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 18 58 20 4 0

Chart5-Chart showing the customers ranking in terms of cleanliness.

Level of cleanliness

Very Bad Bad 1 Average Good Excellent 0 20 40 60 80

Number of respondents

Source-Market Survey

As it can be seen from the above chart, most customers feel that the outlet is good in terms of cleanliness. Very few respondents felt that the place should be kept cleaner. None of the customers have ranked the outlet as very bad in terms of cleanliness! However, a few customers have also complained that the place looks clean but actually is not so.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table 6-Table showing the customers satisfaction in terms of interiors at Monday to sunday.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Interiors Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 10 58 27 5 0

Chart 6-Chart showing the customers satisfaction in terms of interiors at Monday to sunday.

80 Number of respondents 60 40 20 0 Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad Levels of satisfaction Series1

Source-Market Survey

58 percent of the respondents consider the interiors at Monday to Sunday to be good. 10 percent of them feel it is excellent. 27 percent of the customers feel that the interiors can be just ranked as average. Only 5 percent feel it is bad.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table 7- Table showing the customers satisfaction in terms of bill transaction.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Bill transaction Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 4 18 36 28 14

Chart 7- Chart showing the customers satisfaction in terms of bill transaction.

14% 4% 28% 18%

Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

36%

Source-Market Survey

The customers are very upset with respect to the billing system. Very few of them have given a positive response with respect to bill transaction. They have lots of complaints with the billing system as it happens to be very slow and outdated when compared to other retail outlets. Most of the respondents have ranked the billing as average or bad.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table 8- Table showing the customers satisfaction with respect to display of products.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Display of products Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 2 32 43 13 10

Chart 8- Chart showing the customers satisfaction with respect to display of products.
Very Bad 10% Bad 13%

Excellent 2%

Good 32%

Excellent Good Average Bad

Average 43%

Very Bad

Source-Market Survey

As it can be seen from the table and the chart, the way the products are displayed at Monday to Sunday is ranked as average by most of the customers. 32 percent of them feel that the display is good. Only 2 percent feel that the display is excellent, 13 percent consider it bad and 10 percent feel it is very bad. Some customers have said that related products should be kept together so that searching for them in the store will be easier and convenient.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table 9- Table showing the customers ranking of shopping experience at Monday to Sunday.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Shopping experience Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 14 49 34 2 1

Chart 9- Chart showing the customers ranking of shopping experience at Monday to Sunday.

Levels of satisfaction of shopping experience

Very Bad 1 Bad Average Good 0 10 20 30 40 50 Excellent

Number of respondents

Source-Market Survey

Shopping experience is different for each individual. Shopping at Monday to Sunday happens to be excellent for a few customers where as it happens to be very bad for a few customers. Most of the respondents have ranked this attribute as either average or good. Only 1 percent feels it is very bad.

Table 10- Table showing the ranking of sales personnel with respect to helping customers.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Serial No. Helping customers Percentage of respondents 1 2 3 4 5 Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad 0 34 54 5 7

Chart 10- Chart showing the ranking of sales personell with respect to helping customers.
60 50 40 30 20 10 0 Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad Helping customers
Source-Market Survey

Number of customers

Series1

Many customers have complaints regarding the sales representatives at Monday to Sunday. They say that the sales representatives hardly help them in shopping. It is very rare that a sales representative provides any kind of support to the customers. Most of the times they are inaccessible in spite of being present in the store. Language also happens to be a great barrier to communicate as the sales representatives cannot speak English.

Table 11- Table showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of knowledge of products.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5 Knowledge of products Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad Percentage of respondents 0 8 60 17 15

Chart 11-Chart showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of knowledge of products.
0% 15% 8% Excellent Good 17% Average Bad 60% Very Bad

Source-Market Survey

The respondents have said that the sales representatives at Monday to Sunday have absolutely no knowledge about the products. When asked something, they are unable to say anything about the product eg. even attributes like brand name etc. Most customers have ranked this attribute as average, bad or very bad. 60 percent of the customers have ranked as average.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table 12-Table showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of courteousness/politeness towards customers.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Courteousness/politeness Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 2 40 54 3 1

Chart 12- Chart showing the ranking of sales personnel in terms of courteousness/politeness towards customers.

60 50 Number of 40 30 respondents 20 10 0 Excellent

Series1 Average Very Bad

Courteousness/politeness of sales representatives

Source-Market Survey

The customers have no problems with sales representatives regarding the courteousness/ politeness. They consider them to be quite polite towards customers. Negative ranking for this attribute has been recorded as very less.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality Table 13- Table showing the ranking of products in terms of availability.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Availability Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 0 41 44 12 3

Table 14 - Table showing the ranking of products in terms of quality.

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Quality Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 8 60 30 2 0

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

Table 15- Table showing the ranking of products in terms of pricing

Serial No. 1 2 3 4 5

Pricing Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad

Percentage of respondents 2 48 49 1 0

Chart 13- Chart showing ranking of products by customers in terms of availability, quality, pricing.

Number of respondents

80 60 40 20 0 Excellent Good Average Bad Very Bad Levels of satisfaction on product availability,quality,pricing Series1 Series2 Series3

With respect to availability of products, the customers are very upset with Monday to

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

Sunday. They often do not get the products they want at this outlet. Almost all the customers have made a mention of at least one incident when they wanted a product and have gone elsewhere to purchase. Nobody has marked this attribute as excellent. Customers have no issues regarding the quality of products at Monday to Sunday. 60 percent of the customers feel that he quality is good and 30 percent feel it is of average quality. The pricing of products is quite good at Monday to Sunday, customers are happy with the discounts on products. Some customers have also mentioned that the products are quite cheap at Monday to Sunday as compared to other outlets. 48 percent of the respondents have ranked it as good and 49 percent as average.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

Chart 14- Chart indicating whether customers will recommend the store to a friend or relative.

13% 8% Yes No Can't say 79%

79 percent of the customers have said that they will recommend the store to a friend or relative. 8 percent of the customers are very upset with Monday to Sunday and have strongly said that they will never recommend this outlet to anyone. 3 percent of the customers have been diplomatic in answering this question and have responded that they cannot say anything.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

FINDINGS OF THE STUDY

Customers of all age groups visit Monday to Sunday. Thus, age can be considered as a criteria for shopping because people differ in their tastes, choices expectation and satisfaction. It cannot be judged whether more men or women shop at retail outlets. Our sample would have had more of men than women, but most women do visit the store on weekdays. Most of the customers visit monday to sunday and a majority of them have been a customer from less than 6 months.

In terms of cleanliness, most customers do not have a problem. One or two customers have complained that they were very upset when they saw the baker preparing cakes without gloves and also saw insects on the food. However,

they feel that the meat products make the place stink and they find it tough to shop at the outlet. They however, are quite contented with the interior decorations of the place. Almost 50 to 70 percent of the customers are very upset with the billing system. They say that the transaction is very slow. It is just a step ahead of hand billing. At times, only one counter is open and the customers are made to wait for a long time.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

The sales representatives at Monday to Sunday do not provide any kind of help to customers when they are shopping. Infact a few foreign customers have complained that they find it very tough to communicate with the sales representatives as they have a barrier. The sales representatives cannot speak English. When asked about products also, they do not have the least knowledge required. The sales representatives have however been ranked as good and very good in terms of courteousness/politeness towards customers. The service at times is so bad, the customers are made to wait for long hours. One customer quoted an example when she was made to wait for half an hour just to get 6 eggs. The quality and pricing of products happens to be quite good at Monday to Sunday. A few products are currently unavailable and the customers have given a huge list of the products which they would want at Monday to Sunday. The customers want more international products. Most of the customers would recommend Monday to Sunday to other people, they have also mentioned that they can send many more customers to the store if the service improves.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

SUGGESTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS.

Monday to Sunday should improve on areas like customer service etc. If customers are made to wait for long hours, it will reduce their inclination to buy from this store. The bill transaction happens to be a major reason which is annoying most of the customers. The sales representatives should be requested to speed up on this, appropriate arrangements should be made to speed the system. It is very much necessary to train the sales representatives in terms of helping customers and also on knowledge about the products. When customers ask the sales representatives about something, they should be able to explain the features, and also give a comparison with other products. Customers want more products at the outlet, especially international products. Customers also want more cosmetics. Some local products are also out of stock most of the times. All these aspects should be taken care of. Monday to Sunday should go in for customer loyalty programs in order to retain customers. Areas like vegetable and meat storage should be kept cleaner. It should be seen to that the smell of meat doesnt spread across the store. This is upsetting the customers to a large extent.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

The display of products should be much better. Related products should be kept together. It should be easy to access the products.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

ANNEXURE
QUESTIONNAIRE NAME-_____________________________________________________AGE-_______ OCCUPATION-__________________________________________________________

1. How often do you visit monday to sunday?

1. Weekly

2.Fortnightly

3.Monthly

4.Quite rarely

2.Since how long have you been a customer of monday to sunday? 1. Less than 6 months 3.1 year- 2years 2.6 months to 1 year 4.More than 2 years.

3.How do you rank the services of monday to sunday in terms ofExcellent Cleanliness Interiors Bill transaction Display of products Shopping experience Good Average Bad Very Bad

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

4.How do you rank the sales representatives at monday to sunday in terms ofExcellent Helping customers Knowledge of products Courteousness/politeness towards customers Good Average Bad Very bad

5.How do you rank the products at monday to sunday in terms of-

Excellent Availability Quality Pricing

Good

Average

Bad

Very bad

6. Any particular incident when you have been upset with monday to sunday. ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________ 7. Any particular product/ service currently unavailable at monday to sunday which you would want.

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

8. Would you recommend monday to sunday to a friend/relative? Yes No Cant say

9. Please suggest a few areas for improvement. ________________________________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________________________

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Customer expectation and satisfaction of service quality

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Websites referredwww.jubilantcorp.com www.google.com www.questionpro.com

Books referredMarketing Management by Philip Kotler Retail Marketing Management by David Gilbert Consumer Behaviour by Schiffman

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